If you’ve been following this little ol’ blog since the beginning, it should come as no surprise that the music of Yann Tiersen is on this list. With Infinity, Tiersen’s sound has evolved once more as he explores new ideas and themes.

♩ Yann Tiersen – Lights [from Infinity]

[yanntiersen.bzh]

This infectious, synth-pop gem belongs in a 80s teen movie. Imagine this — the captain of the cheerleading squad (let’s call her Brit) is failing chemistry and if she doesn’t pass, daddy is going to cut her off and make her get a summer job. While her jock, captain of the football team, boyfriend (let’s call him Brad) is busy slammin’ cold ones and cruisin’ the galleria for strange, Brit is forced to seek out tutoring from the school nerd (let’s call him Dev…who is shockingly good looking when he’s not wearing glasses and drops the Jerry Lewis look). Long story short, as Brit takes the chemistry final, the audience is sucked into a daydream montage with this track playing, and Brit finally realizes Dev is the guy for her.

♩ Miniature Tigers – Oblivious [from Cruel Runnings]

[miniaturetigers.com]

Mapei dropped one of best pop records of the year and even though i featured her first single “Don’t Wait” back in 2013, it’s too good not to feature once again. But I also can’t pass up the opportunity to gush over Mapei’s super cool rendition of Burt Bacharach, Luther Dixon, and Mack David’s “Baby It’s You” (made famous by both The Shirelles and The Beatles).

♩ Mapei – Don’t Wait [from Hey Hey]

♩ Mapei – Baby It’s You [from Hey Hey]

[mapeiofficial.com]

Easily the best song Mr. Oberst has ever recorded in my opinion.

♩ Conor Oberst – Time Forgot [from Upside Down Mountain]

[conoroberst.com]

#31days2014